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TOOL #1: Desired Outcomes
Always ask the #1 Systems Question First:
"What
are the desired outcomes?"
Since systems usually
have multiple outcomes, this is a more complex
question than at first glance.
Principle:
Living systems here on earth (ie., people) are
naturally goal-seeking.
No matter what you do
all day long at work or at play, it is of tremendous
value to develop clarity and agreement on your
desired outcomes before beginning any actions.
Keep in mind, there are
usually multiple outcomes—not “either/or” responses
from reductionistic thinking.
Other words for
OUTCOMES include:
-
Vision
-
Ends
-
Objectives
-
Mission
-
Purpose
-
Goal
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Results
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Destination
-
Outputs
Without agreement on the
ends from the people who matter, our actions rarely
have a chance of succeeding.
Once the desired outcome
(the “what”) is clear in our lives, there are many
ways (the “how”) to arrive at this destination.
Know Your Destination First! What’s Your
Target?
“The great successful men (and women) of the
world have used their imagination. They think ahead
and create their mental picture, and then go to work
materializing that picture in all its details,
filling in here, adding a little there, altering
this a bit and that a bit, but steadily
building—steadily building.” —Robert
Collier
Examples–
—We
usually are reasonably sure of our destination
(desired outcome) before we begin driving our car.
By
the same token, a project manager would not begin a
project without knowing the project goals. However,
we often run our businesses, jobs, and lives without
clearly knowing our desired outcomes.
–Organizational outcomes often include what
can be called a “Triple-Bottom-Line” composed of:
1)
the needs of customers, and
2) the needs of employees, and
3) the needs of stockholders.
A
“Triple-Double” would also include the needs of:
4)
the community, and
5) suppliers, as well.
Thinking about your “Triple-Bottom-Line” is the
beginning of “Backwards Thinking” (or, thinking
backwards from your “desired destination” in order
to figure out how to achieve it—see Tool #3).
–For
every organizational task, there are at least two
desired outcomes—the organization’s and the
individual’s. Each of us has a permanent sign across
our chest of WIIFM (“What’s In It For Me?”).
–Do you have clear destinations for yourself, your
family, and your children? Or are you like most
people—just living your life day to day?
Further, “desired
outcomes” are all about setting goals. In all the
literature, the #1 criteria for success is goal
setting (so be sure to establish your vision or
purpose).
Summary–
In simplistic and
personal terms, it means making a daily “action”
list so you focus on actions that lead to the
results you want, not just talk and good ideas.
Many meetings are a
waste of time. If you want to make any meeting in
your life more effective—just ask the #1 Systems
Question: What are the desired outcomes from this
meeting?
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